Kansas Lawmaker Leary Of Plans To Privatize Osawatomie

A Democratic candidate for Kansas governor says the Brownback administration is bent on privatizing a key mental health facility.

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The Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services has unveiled a proposal to build a new mental hospital at Osawatomie, which a Tennessee company would run.

But Kansas House Minority Leader Jim Ward says the agency should be exploring in-house options.

"This administration has a terrible history of privatization. Whether it be child support collection, DCF, KanCare,” Ward says.

KDADS Secretary Tim Keck says the private operator would bring expertise and the ability to recruit mental health professionals. But, he says, his department is keeping an open mind.

“I want to improve Osawatomie, I’ve made up my mind about that. How we do that has not been finalized,” Keck says.

KDADS will need to provide options to lawmakers next year. That’s required before proceeding with any plan.

Keck will make a presentation on the Osawatomie proposal in Wichita on Thursday at 1 p.m. It’s open to the public and will take place at the Sedgwick County Developmental Disability Organization at 615 N. Main.

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Kansas officials have cleared an initial hurdle in their effort to regain federal certification for Osawatomie State Hospital.

Problems that federal inspectors cited in May have been fixed, making the state’s largest mental health hospital eligible for a full recertification inspection, according to the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services.

That inspection must take place within the next 120 days, according to KDADS Secretary Tim Keck.